Table Of Content

June 6, 2012 Great Lakes Quick Facts Geography  The five Great Lakes and their connecting rivers form the largest surface fresh water system, and the largest readily available source of fresh water – 20 per cent of the planet’s supply.  The Great Lakes basin covers an area of 750,000 square kilometres - an area larger than New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island combined.  Ontario’s Great Lakes form the longest freshwater coastline in the world stretching more than 11,000 kilometres.  A single drop of water entering Lake Superior takes 300 years to make its way to the St. Lawrence River. People and the Lakes  Ninety-eight per cent of Ontario’s population — more than 12 million people — lives in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River basin.  Every year 10 million visits are made to provincial parks on the Great Lakes.  There are 100,000 cottages near the shoreline of the Great Lakes.  More than 1.5 million recreational boaters travel the waters of the Great Lakes every year.  Every year about 400,000 people enjoy recreational fishing in Ontario’s portion of the Great Lakes basin.  Eight of Canada’s 20 largest cities are in the Great Lakes basin.  The Great Lakes basin is home to 63 First Nations communities.  More than 80 per cent of Ontarians get their drinking water from Lakes Superior, Huron, Erie and Ontario.  Nearly all of Ontario’s future population growth is expected to occur in the Great Lakes area. At an annual growth rate of six per cent, ours is the fastest-growing population among Great Lakes jurisdictions. Ecology  Over 4,000 species of plants, fish and wildlife live in the Great Lakes Basin ecosystem – it’s one of the most biologically rich regions in Canada.  Joint Canada-U.S. actions have resulted in a 90 per cent reduction in releases of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) since 1993 and 90 per cent reduction in mercury since 1988.  Invasive mussels cover 47 per cent of the lake bottom in coastal areas of Lake Ontario.  Toxic hot spots called Areas of Concern have been cleaned up in Collingwood Harbour, Severn Sound (Georgian Bay), and Wheatley Harbour (Lake Erie).  All cleanup actions are complete at Spanish Harbour and Jackfish Bay on Lake Superior and these are now recognized Areas of Concern in Recovery. Other Area of Concern clean ups in the Detroit River, the St. Lawrence River, the Toronto area shoreline, and in Peninsula Harbour and Nipigon Bay on Lake Superior are in progress. Economy  Altogether, the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River regional economy is considered fourth largest economy in the world.  In 2011, commercial fishing contributed $234 million to Ontario's economy.  Ontario’s Great Lakes basin agri-food industry contributes $33 billion a year to our gross domestic product, and provides jobs for 700,000 people.  In 2005, the Ontario shipping industry generated $2.6 billion in provincial gross domestic product. It provided nearly 20,000 jobs, more than $1 billion in household income, and spent $1.5 billion on goods and services.  In 2010, Ontario had more than 73 million tourist visits in the Great Lakes region, injecting $12.3 billion into our economy. Lake Superior  Lake Superior is the largest and the deepest of the Great Lakes with an average depth of 147 metres.  Lake Superior is the world's third-largest freshwater lake by volume, behind Lake Baikal in Russia and Lake Tanganyika in Africa. Lake Huron  Lake Huron is the second largest Great Lake by surface area and the fifth largest freshwater lake in the world. On its own, Georgian Bay is large enough to be among the world's 20 largest lakes.  The Sifto Salt Mine, the largest salt mine in the world, is more than 500 metres underground and extends five kilometres under Lake Huron. Forty-five per cent of Canada's rock salt is mined in this Goderich mine, which produces 7.25 million tonnes of salt every year. Lake Erie  Lake Erie is the smallest Great Lake by volume and the shallowest with an average depth of about 19 metres.  The shallowness of the basin and the moderate climate make Lake Erie the most biologically verse and productive of the Great Lakes. Lake Ontario  Lake Ontario is the smallest Great Lake by surface area but with an average depth of 86 metres holds a much greater volume of water than Lake Erie.  Lake Ontario lies 99 metres below Lake Erie, with Niagara Falls the spectacular result. © Queen’s Printer for Ontario, 2012 PIBS 8998e